Mary, the mother of Jesus, has an exalted place in Roman Catholic theology. How did this come to be? Is it biblical or an example of misguided church tradition veering into something unbiblical that is perhaps more pagan than Christian?

Years ago I had an opportunity to make my first trip to Mexico and vividly remember visiting the cathedral in Taxco. It was a massive stone edifice, impressive on the outside and full of gold on the inside. I noted the gold that covered the altar wall, the multitudes of statues of the saints, and, as I walked down the center aisle, looking down and to my left into an open stone crypt that held a wax dummy of a crucified and dead Jesus. (For a Biblical Christian, this was extremely odd, since we worship a risen Savior, not a dead one.) The biggest impression that visit left with me was the incredible influence and power the Roman Catholic Church had in Mexico. For the first time in my life I saw Roman Catholicism in its “raw” form, which is very different from how it presents itself in the United States.

I also remember driving through the countryside and noting the multitudes of roadside shrines which contained statues of Mary, specifically ones dedicated to Our Lady of Guadalupe, in honor of an appearance she purportedly made to a young peasant named Juan Diego in 1531 in what is now Mexico City. (You can read more about this by clicking here.) Whoever this being was that appeared to Juan, “she” requested that a church be erected in her honor, which is now the most visited Catholic shrine in the world. This being told Juan not to fear because she was his mother. In order to prove her authenticity she supposedly healed Juan’s uncle who was near death and imprinted an image of herself on his cloak. On the right is a photo of the how “Mary” supposedly. This image is located in that shrine. 

This is not the only time Jesus’ mother is reported to have appeared to someone in a very special way. On February 11, 1858, the Virgin purportedly appeared to a young peasant girl name Bernadette Soubirous in Lourdes, France. On the eighteenth time she appeared to Bernadette, “Mary” declared that she was the “Immaculate Conception.” The Catholic Church later officially adopted this declaration as an official infallibly correct doctrine, which holds that Mary was conceived and born without any stain of original sin, just like Jesus. No explanation was given as to how that could have taken place or why it is not mentioned in the Bible.

Mary was also supposed to have appeared to three young children in Fatima, Portugal in 1916 and 1917. The children described the apparition as a lady “more brilliant than the sun.” It was here that the Catholic Church’s devotion to praying the Rosary escalated after the apparition said that a daily praying of the Rosary was a key to personal and world peace. The Rosary is a string of beads that helps the one praying to repeat prayers is a particular order. The most repeated prayer is called the “Hail, Mary,” which directly asks Mary to intercede or advocate with us before God. Here are the words.

Hail, Mary, full of grace,
the Lord is with thee.
Blessed art thou amongst women
and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.
Holy Mary, Mother of God,
pray for us sinners,
now and at the hour of our death.
Amen.

The apparition also said the following:

Jesus wishes to use you to make me better known and loved. He wishes to establish in the world devotion to my Immaculate Heart. No, my child [you will not be alone], and would that make you suffer? Do not be disheartened. My Immaculate Heart will never abandon you, but will be your refuge and the way that will lead you to God.

There are around 500 examples of Mary appearing to people in special ways. Jesus’ mother has come to be known by many titles that are sanctioned by the Roman Catholic Church, which include the following heretical names: “Mother of the Church” (Lourdes), Mother of God, Immaculate Mary, and Queen of Heaven.

And now for an application. As I mentioned earlier in this article, one of the names given to Mary is Queen of Heaven. The prophet Jeremiah mentions a pagan deity with the same name (Jeremiah 44:25), which probably was a reference to Ishtar, a goddess of fertility from which the word Easter is derived. (Syncretism shows its ugly face again.) In fact, this title of Queen of Heaven has been given to female goddesses throughout the world: Athor (Egypt), Virgo Deipara (Tibet and China), Hestia (Greece), and Juno (Rome). It is very troubling that by elevating Mary to an unbiblical status and naming her after a pagan goddess, the Roman Catholic Church has facilitated a form of goddess worship.

My home church in Greensboro when growing up was called Our Lady of Grace. Her image show rays of grace descending downward from her hands, illustrating how Mary has been transformed by the Catholic Church’s doctrine and tradition from being the one who received amazing grace and favor to being the one through whom grace flows to people, something reserved to our Lord Jesus.

For of His fullness we have all received, and grace upon grace. 17 For the Law was given through Moses; grace and truth were realized through Jesus Christ. John 1:16–17 (NASB95) —

Mary was indeed a most favored woman whom God chose to conceive and give birth to the supernatural/human Son of God who was both God and man. Jesus’ divine side came from the Holy Spirit, but his human side came from Mary. The doctrine of the Immaculate Conception makes Mary out to be every bit as sinless and divine as her amazing Son, something that is unbiblical and illogical and which is a cornerstone of her arising to the status of Queen of Heaven. If Mary were indeed sinless, then she, too, would have been fathered directly by God, but this is not so. Mary was specially favored but very much a human, according to the Bible’s portrayal. According to Scripture, she and Joseph had other children after Jesus’ birth, one of whom (James) became the head of the church in Jerusalem.

And Joseph awoke from his sleep and did as the angel of the Lord commanded him, and took Mary as his wife, 25 but kept her a virgin until she gave birth to a Son; and he called His name Jesus. Matthew 1:24–25 (NASB95) —

“Is not this the carpenter’s son? Is not His mother called Mary, and His brothers, James and Joseph and Simon and Judas? 56 “And His sisters, are they not all with us? Where then did this man get all these things?” Matthew 13:55–56 (NASB95) —

The Catholic Church, however, insists that she remained a virgin for the rest of her life.

The non-biblical doctrine of Mary’s Assumption, that is, that she was taken bodily into heaven, is also foundational to her eventual status as the Queen of Heaven. Adding these additional doctrines to church tradition is a clear example of adding to the words of the Bible, something expressly forbidden in the Scripture. (Deuteronomy 4:2 and Proverbs 30:6) The prophet Isaiah also wrote:

To the teaching and to the testimony! If they will not speak according to this word, it is because they have no dawn. Isaiah 8:20 (ESV)

Paul also warns that Satan is able to disguise himself as an “angel of light,” (2 Corinthians 11:14)  if need be, in order to deceive. Paul also wrote that the church would eventually be attacked by what he called “doctrines of demons.”

Now the Holy Spirit tells us clearly that in the last times some will turn away from the true faith; they will follow deceptive spirits and teachings that come from demons. 1 Timothy 4:1 (NLT)

Therefore, if any doctrine does not agree with what is written in the Bible, it means that it does not come from God.

This goes back to the basic question as to the authority of Scripture versus the authority of church dogma and tradition. One or the other must reign supreme. We cannot have it both ways.

As Queen of Heaven and as Christ’s mother, Mary is supposed to have enormous powers of influence with her Son even today. Church members are encouraged to pray to her as a type of mediator between God and them.

It is important to remember that Jesus specifically told us to pray directly to our heavenly Father.

At that time you won’t need to ask me for anything. I tell you the truth, you will ask the Father directly, and he will grant your request because you use my name.  John 16:23 (NLT)

In other words, Jesus said, “You don’t even need to go through me any longer. You can go directly to Abba!”

The concept of using Mary as an intermediary in prayer if totally foreign to the Bible and another example of layering church tradition on top of Bible truth and coming up with falsehood.

The amazing truth of Christianity is that Jesus opened the way for us to have direct access to Father God, to whom belongs all the glory and honor and devotion. When Jesus died, the temple veil was torn from top to bottom, something that only God could do, giving all believers direct access to God’s presence.

Therefore, brethren, since we have confidence to enter the holy place by the blood of Jesus, 20 by a new and living way which He inaugurated for us through the veil, that is, His flesh, 21 and since we have a great priest over the house of God, 22 let us draw near with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. 23 Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful; Hebrews 10:19-23 (NASB)

Why would anyone want to be part of a religious system that places intermediaries between us and Father God, as if God somehow were not happy with us and would not listen to our prayers? I have no problem with there being saints in heaven, including Mary, who care about us and who perhaps even pray for us, but the Bible never says anything about them having a mediatorial prayer function. The only person having such a function is our Lord Jesus.

Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died—more than that, who was raised— who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us. Romans 8:34 (ESV) 

Consequently, he is able to save to the uttermost those who draw near to God through him, since he always lives to make intercession for them. Hebrews 7:25 (ESV) 

(My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin.) But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous One, 1 John 2:1 (NET1) 

Placing Mary and the other saints in Christ’s place distracts and detracts from Jesus’ role as our Supreme Advocate and Intercessor.

And besides this, we have another advocate right here on earth, who indwells every believer. His name is the Holy Spirit.

And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate, who will never leave you. 17 He is the Holy Spirit, who leads into all truth. The world cannot receive him, because it isn’t looking for him and doesn’t recognize him. But you know him, because he lives with you now and later will be in you.  John 14:16-17 (NLT) 

I believe the devil would rather a person turn to Mary than directly to God. In so doing, they are likely, though unwittingly, turning to a pagan deity called the Queen of Heaven, which is sad, terrible, and dangerous.

Why would anyone choose a lesser advocate (a priest, Mary, or the saints) over the greater One? Why would anyone prefer to have heavenly humans plead their case instead of God Himself? I believe the answer lies in a paucity of biblical understanding and a lack of relationship with God through the new birth which is a result of Roman Catholic teaching and practice. God is seen as distant and difficult to approach, and church members can never be quite sure if they are good enough to please Him and remain in His good graces. They feel that they need someone on the “inside” working for them to gain God’s favor. How sad is that?

Jesus came to give all believers great favor with God, not just Mary. Jesus came to make us all beloved and favored sons and daughters.

So you have not received a spirit that makes you fearful slaves. Instead, you received God’s Spirit when he adopted you as his own children. Now we call him, “Abba, Father.” 16 For his Spirit joins with our spirit to affirm that we are God’s children. Romans 8:15-16 (NLT)

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, 4 just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before Him. In love 5 He predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the kind intention of His will, 6 to the praise of the glory of His grace, which He freely bestowed on us in the Beloved. 7 In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace 8 which He lavished on us. In all wisdom and insight 9 He made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His kind intention which He purposed in Him Ephesians 1:3–9 (NASB95) —

Whereas Biblical Christianity provides believers with assurance of being accepted and loved by God through faith in Christ, Roman Catholic teaching leaves its followers stranded on a performance treadmill, trying to stay on God’s good side by keeping church rules and rites, using priests as earthly mediators of grace and absolution from sin, and praying to Mary and the saints instead of directly to God the Father – all without having any final assurance of salvation. I well remember what that was like; but, when I was born again through faith in Christ, I left all that behind. Now I turn to Christ for forgiveness. I am no longer under the performance-based “keeping of the Law” to earn God’s favor. I have been given the gift of right standing with God through Christ.

Therefore, since we have been made right in God’s sight by faith, we have peace with God because of what Jesus Christ our Lord has done for us. 2 Because of our faith, Christ has brought us into this place of undeserved privilege where we now stand, and we confidently and joyfully look forward to sharing God’s glory. Romans 5:1-2 (NLT) 

I do not have to go through others to ask God to help me out. Instead, I do as Jesus commanded and ask my Heavenly Father for what I need.

Mankind is religious by nature, and, without revelation from the Holy Spirit, we will always seek to build our own system of salvation. It started with Cain who offered his own idea of a good sacrifice instead of what God wanted. It found further expression at Babel when the inhabitants tried to erect a building to reach to the heavens. It now exists in the Catholic Church and every other man-made religion, including legalistic Protestantism. There is only one way to be free. We must believe in Christ alone and reject every other way to heaven.

Jesus told him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me. John 14:6 (NLT) 

One of the huge disparities between what the Catholic Church teaches and practices and what the New Testament teaches relates to the priesthood and the Mass. The Catholic Church has blended Old Covenant ideas and rites with the New Covenant, an abominable form of syncretism. The priesthood and Mass are rooted in Old Covenant types, which have already been perfectly fulfilled by Christ and rendered obsolete by God.

Under the Old Covenant, the people of Israel generally had no direct access to God. Although God revealed himself to various leaders and spokesmen (for example, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, Joshua, and the prophets), he set up the sacrificial system as the means for his people to approach him and stay in a temporary right relationship with him. The priests acted as mediators between God and the people and offered daily sacrifices on their behalf. However, these sacrifices had no power to make the people right with God. The blood of animals could never do this, only the blood of God’s own Son.

For it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins. Hebrews 10:4 (NASB95) —

The purpose of the Old Covenant was to prepare God’s people for their coming Messiah.

The Law pointed out our need for God’s forgiveness and intervention through the only sacrifice that had the power to save us. Once Jesus came and fulfilled the Old Covenant and introduced the New Covenant in his blood, the Old Covenant was rendered obsolete.

But now Jesus, our High Priest, has been given a ministry that is far superior to the old priesthood, for he is the one who mediates for us a far better covenant with God, based on better promises. 7 If the first covenant had been faultless, there would have been no need for a second covenant to replace it. 8 But when God found fault with the people, he said: “The day is coming, says the LORD, when I will make a new covenant with the people of Israel and Judah. 9 This covenant will not be like the one I made with their ancestors when I took them by the hand and led them out of the land of Egypt. They did not remain faithful to my covenant, so I turned my back on them, says the LORD. 10 But this is the new covenant I will make with the people of Israel on that day, says the LORD: I will put my laws in their minds, and I will write them on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people. 11 And they will not need to teach their neighbors, nor will they need to teach their relatives, saying, ‘You should know the LORD.’ For everyone, from the least to the greatest, will know me already. 12 And I will forgive their wickedness, and I will never again remember their sins.” 13 When God speaks of a “new” covenant, it means he has made the first one obsolete. It is now out of date and will soon disappear. Hebrews 8:6–13 (NLT) —

Old Covenant priests were required to offer daily sacrifices, and once a year, and only once a year, the high priest would enter the Holy of Holies, where God dwelled, to sprinkle blood on the Ark of the Covenant on the Day of Atonement in order to provide temporary forgiveness for himself and the people.

The sacrificial system and Day of Atonement pointed to its fulfillment when Jesus died on Calvary and subsequently rose from the dead as Lord. The introduction of the New Covenant through Christ marked a drastic and complete break with the Old Covenant.

Again we turn to the Letter to the Hebrews.

Because of this oath, Jesus is the one who guarantees this better covenant with God. 23 There were many priests under the old system, for death prevented them from remaining in office. 24 But because Jesus lives forever, his priesthood lasts forever. 25 Therefore he is able, once and forever, to save those who come to God through him. He lives forever to intercede with God on their behalf. 26 He is the kind of high priest we need because he is holy and blameless, unstained by sin. He has been set apart from sinners and has been given the highest place of honor in heaven. 27 Unlike those other high priests, he does not need to offer sacrifices every day. They did this for their own sins first and then for the sins of the people. But Jesus did this once for all when he offered himself as the sacrifice for the people’s sins. 28 The law appointed high priests who were limited by human weakness. But after the law was given, God appointed his Son with an oath, and his Son has been made the perfect High Priest forever. Hebrews 7:22-28 (NLT)

The Old Covenant sacrificial system could never remove sin. It was a stop gap measure until the true Lamb of God would come and shed his blood. God accepted the sacrifices made under the Law, if they were made in faith, because that was the only way God had revealed up until that time.

When Christ came to fulfill all the requirements of the Law on our behalf, there was no longer any need for the “shadow” provided by what the Old Covenant required.

History informs us that some 37 years after the crucifixion of Jesus, the Temple was destroyed and the Jewish sacrificial system abolished forever. This fits perfectly with what the author of Hebrews wrote.

When God speaks of a “new” covenant, it means he has made the first one obsolete. It is now out of date and will soon disappear. Hebrews 8:13 (NLT)

The Letter to the Hebrews explains that what Christ accomplished on the cross is a perfect and complete work which will never be repeated.

Under the old covenant, the priest stands and ministers before the altar day after day, offering the same sacrifices again and again, which can never take away sins. 12 But our High Priest offered himself to God as a single sacrifice for sins, good for all time. Then he sat down in the place of honor at God’s right hand. 13 There he waits until his enemies are humbled and made a footstool under his feet. 14 For by that one offering he forever made perfect those who are being made holy. Hebrews 10:11-14 (NLT)

I am convinced the old sacrificial system will never be reinstated. What would be the purpose now that Christ himself has been offered?

Now to the crux of things: the Council of Trent established the following doctrine: “If any one saith, that the sacrifice of the mass is only a sacrifice of praise and of thanksgiving; or, that it is a bare commemoration of the sacrifice consummated on the cross, but not a propitiatory sacrifice; or, that it profits him only who receives; and that it ought not to be offered for the living and the dead for sins, pains, satisfactions, and other necessities; let him be anathema.” (Trent: On the Sacrifice of the Mass: Canon 3)

By purporting to re-sacrifice Christ on the altar each time a Mass is celebrated, albeit an unbloody one, the Catholic Church not only defies the clear teaching of Scripture, but it abominably pretends to oversee or mediate that sacrifice with its own order of priests!

Propitiation is the appeasement of divine wrath providing forgiveness. If one is to follow the clear teaching of Scripture, it is impossible to embrace any teaching that says Christ is re-sacrificed over and over again in an expiatory manner.

The New Testament also clearly teaches that the Old Covenant priesthood was abolished with the coming of the perfect High Priest, Jesus the Messiah. Instead, Peter writes in his First Letter that the entire church has been made a “holy priesthood offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.” (1 Peter 2:5) These spiritual sacrifices are clearly enumerated in the New Testament and include dedicating ourselves to God, praise, doing good, and generously sharing with others. (Romans 12:1-2, Hebrews 13:15-16)

Old Covenant priests stood in the gap or mediated between God and men, bringing the people’s sacrifices to God and taking God’s word and blessings to the people. The Catholic Church teaches that its priests also serve in a mediatorial role between God and the people. They are said to act as mediators of God’s grace by administering the sacraments to the people. For example, if a person wants her sins absolved, she must confess these sins to a priest, do some form of penance, and then receive absolution or cleansing from those sins from the priest. (It is also taught that absolution can be directly received from God if the contrition is “perfect,” that is, it is totally selfless, being only concerned about God’s side of things and having no thought for ourselves. I think such a form of contrition is virtually impossible.)

The Bible teaches, on the other hand, that Christ has provided access for every believer to come directly to God to receive what is needed, especially the forgiveness that was once for all provided by Christ’s perfect sacrifice on the cross.

So then, since we have a great High Priest who has entered heaven, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to what we believe. 15 This High Priest of ours understands our weaknesses, for he faced all of the same testings we do, yet he did not sin. 16 So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive his mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it most. Hebrews 4:14-16 (NLT)

But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness. 1 John 1:9 (NLT)

It is clear that the New Covenant radically altered all believers’ relationship with God. No longer are we dependent on a priesthood to mediate between us and God.

Instead, as Jeremiah prophesied and the writer of the Letter to the Hebrews affirms:

But this is the new covenant I will make with the people of Israel on that day, says the LORD: I will put my laws in their minds, and I will write them on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people. 11 And they will not need to teach their neighbors, nor will they need to teach their relatives, saying, ‘You should know the LORD.’ For everyone, from the least to the greatest, will know me already. 12 And I will forgive their wickedness, and I will never again remember their sins.” Hebrews 8:10-12 (NLT)

When I discovered the glorious promises and the astounding realities of the New Covenant, how could I ever return to a church that teaches doctrines rooted in an abolished Old Covenant system? How could I allow the imposition of a priestly class of mediators between me and God? How could I support a purported re-sacrificing of Christ in the Mass, when the Bible teaches that his sacrifice was perfect and will never be repeated? How can I go back to asking God’s forgiveness through a priest when God has already provided that through Christ and has given me direct access to his throne? I hope it is becoming increasingly clear to you, the reader, that I had no choice but to leave the Church of my youth.

How did I go from being a devout Catholic to being an evangelical Protestant? It all revolves around what the reformers called “sola scriptura.”

After my new birth experience, I had no plans to leave the Catholic Church. In fact, it was quite the opposite. Since I grew up in the church, I knew a lot about it. I had believed its teachings and followed its traditions for most of my life. I had seen it transition from using Latin during the Mass (which I had to memorize as an altar boy) to the use of the common language of the people. I had been a part of implementing other changes after the Second Vatican Council, many of which were moving in a good direction. Actually, my involvement in the church increased over the next two or three years as I helped to lead music at what were called guitar Masses, an attempt to blend the music of the Seventies with the traditional Mass. I taught children in the Catholic version of Sunday School. So then, what happened that led me to depart from the church I had known and served for most of my life?

Putting the Bible in the hands of common people fueled the movement called the Protestant Reformation more than anything else.

The Catholic Church had long kept that book in the hands of the Church hierarchy and veiled in the Latin language. When it became available to the masses thanks to the courage of translators, who sometimes gave their lives to do this service, and the wonderful timing of the introduction of the printing press, people began to read the Bible for themselves. They saw discrepancies between what the Bible teaches and Church doctrine and practice. Basically this is what happened to me as well.

One of the rallying cries of the Protestant Reformation was “sola scriptura.” This Latin phrase contains three major ideas: 1) The scriptures have the deciding authority in the church and believer’s life, 2) the scriptures are sufficient for salvation, and 3) the scriptures are clear enough to be understood by the average person.

The Roman Catholic Church taught that the authority of the bishops and Pope (the magisterium) could overrule the Scriptures. Only the bishops and Pope could properly interpret the Bible; therefore, their decisions regarding what it meant overruled what anyone else might think. They introduced extrabibical doctrines and practices, such as the Mass, the Immaculate Conception, the Assumption of Mary, purgatory, holy days of obligation, and indulgences. Until the invention of the printing press, most common people were not able to read the Bible in their own language, putting them at the mercy of church teachers, who sometimes hid, twisted, or flatly contradicted the meaning.

Sola scriptura meant that the people could turn directly to the Bible without going through the mediation of the Roman Catholic Church.

Secondly, the Bible teaches that we are saved simply by believing what the Bible teaches, especially regarding faith in our Lord. Over the centuries, the Roman Catholic Church introduced several other “necessary” ingredients, which kept people dependent on the church as the mediator between them and God. This “adding” to the gospel is clearly condemned in the Bible.

Sola scriptura meant that people no longer needed to use the church to get to God. He was directly accessible to them.

Thirdly, even though some scriptures are difficult to understand, even for trained interpreters, the general meaning and teaching of the Bible can be understood by the average person, even a child.

Sola scriptura meant that ordinary people were empowered and encouraged to read, study, and understand what the Bible teaches.

People no longer had to depend on a church hierarchy to understand the Bible. The Holy Spirit could teach them.

But you have received the Holy Spirit, and he lives within you, so you don’t need anyone to teach you what is true. For the Spirit teaches you everything you need to know, and what he teaches is true—it is not a lie. So just as he has taught you, remain in fellowship with Christ. 1 John 2:27 (NLT) —

One of the marks of a born again believer is a hunger to read, study, understand, and obey the teachings of the Bible.

Jesus said:

Jesus said to the people who believed in him, “You are truly my disciples if you remain faithful to my teachings. 32 And you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” John 8:31–32 (NLT) —

One of the major hurdles that every believer faces is whether or not the Word of God will have complete authority in his or her life. I personally faced this test not long after becoming a Christian, in maybe about a year. When I first was born again, all I really knew was that Jesus is God’s Son, who died for me and rose from the dead. I still had a lot of confusion about other things because I did not know what the Bible said yet. But I kept reading and studying it. I remember wrestling with the decision of whether to submit completely to its instruction and commands. Maybe for some this would be a “no brainer,” but, for a Catholic, it is a big deal. In a sense, I had to overcome what some call brainwashing.

If I were to accept the Bible as my greatest authority, I would have to reject some of the Church’s teachings and its authority in my life. Yes, this was a big deal! To walk away from the church was to turn my back on what I had been taught all my life would enable me to go to heaven. It would mean I would put all my eggs in the basket of trusting simply in what the Bible teaches and in what Jesus did for me when he died and rose again. It would mean that I would no longer depend on the Roman Catholic Church for anything. A big step… one that some are not willing to take.

Jesus warned the Jewish hierarchy of his day, the equivalent of the Roman Catholic magisterium, that they were guilty of nullifying the clear teaching of God’s Word in favor of their religious traditions. (Mark 7:13) He warned them that the scriptures cannot be altered. (John 10:35) In fact, Jesus is the divine Logos, the eternal word of God. (John 1:1, 14) To invalidate the Bible in favor of religious tradition is the worst sort of idolatry. Instead we are to trust completely the promises of God, which are sufficient to save us. Abraham is a clear example. God promised that he would have innumerable descendants when he was a childless old man. He took God at his word, and Bible says that God put him into a right relationship (justified) with him. (Genesis 15:6) Simple faith is what saves us, faith in the gospel announcement that Jesus died for our sins and rose again as Lord of Lords. (Galatians 2:16)

Jesus taught, even rejoiced in the fact, that God reveals his Word to common people.

At that time Jesus said, “I praise You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and intelligent and have revealed them to infants. 26 “Yes, Father, for this way was well-pleasing in Your sight. Matthew 11:25–26 (NASB95) —

Jesus broke the power of the hierarchy to control access to God’s truth in his day, he did it again during the Reformation, and he is still working.

He warned the Jewish leaders that he knew what they were doing.

What sorrow awaits you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! For you shut the door of the Kingdom of Heaven in people’s faces. You won’t go in yourselves, and you don’t let others enter either. Matthew 23:13 (NLT) —

After studying the Bible and praying, I, like many others over the centuries, began to see clearly how the Roman Catholic Church had established traditions and doctrines that run contrary to God’s Word. To remain in that Church would require me to turn my back on the authority of the Bible in favor of the authority of Church tradition and the Pope, something I could not do. As Martin Luther famously said when he stood trial before the Church, “Here I stand. I cannot do otherwise. God help me. Amen.”

In Part 1 of this series, I described my new birth experience and the realization that my new relationship with God through Christ had little or nothing to do with what I had been taught or seen modeled in the Catholic Church. This does not mean that there is no truth in the Catholic Church or that no godly people are part of that church. Quite the contrary! I learned about God, sin, and judgment there. I learned about God’s demand upon us to live according to his laws. I also met people whom I now realize likely were true born again believers. There are true believers in every church, but unfortunately there are those who are merely following the tenets of man-made religion in every church, too. Jesus called them “tares” or weeds growing among the true wheat. Even in churches which preach the true gospel, counterfeit believers are present. Most likely, they do not even know that they are false brethren. Deception runs deep, and self-deception is the worst of all.

The official teaching of the Catholic Church is that we gain entrance into the church through the sacrament of baptism and maintain a relationship with God by keeping his commandments, church laws, and through the grace brought to us through the Mass and the seven sacraments. Living in a “state of grace” is fluid, and we are always in danger of losing it by committing what are called “mortal” sins. When this happens, the only way back into God’s good graces is through what is called “perfect contrition” (which is pretty much impossible to attain) or by confessing our sins to a priest and receiving absolution from him. One can never be completely sure of his or her final destiny, because that depends upon our being in a state of grace at the time of death. We were encouraged to “make” nine First Fridays (go to Mass and receive communion on nine consecutive first Fridays of the month) so that we could be assured that we would have the opportunity to make a good confession prior to death. This is called an indulgence, which is basically a promise or guarantee from God (through the authority of the church) based upon some good work we perform. But indulgences are only the tip of the legalistic iceberg. All of salvation is performance-based in the Catholic Church.

Jesus did not secure our salvation, he only made it possible for those who keep the rules.

All sorts of laws are in place that must be kept to stay right with God, some based on the Ten Commandments and others on church tradition. This was also the case in Judaism at the time when Christ ministered. When I was very young, we were forbidden to eat meat on Fridays. Later, this rule was abandoned. (I have often wondered if those who were burning in hell because of violating this commandment were set free when the church changed its mind. Smile.) We were required to attend Mass on Sundays and other “Holy Days of Obligation,” or be condemned. Later Saturday evening was included to help people meet their Sunday requirement. Because of the Catholic Church’s performance orientation to salvation, Catholics are on a perpetual treadmill of going to confession, trying hard to remain in a state of grace by not committing mortal sins, committing mortal sins, and going to confession again. One just hopes that he will not die before he can get to confession! I remember realizing as a kid that God already knew whether or not I would die in a state of grace or not and wondering if my destiny was heaven or hell.

There was no way for me to have any assurance, and that is no way to live.

When we grow up in such as system, we think it is normal and right. By default, human beings tend toward legalism because we understand that we are fallen beings who need to get back into a right standing with God. We just do not know how to get there. We think it is by earning our way back, but that is impossible. The only way is for us to be forgiven, not just temporarily, but once and for all. Is this even possible? The Bible says it is.

For it was fitting for us to have such a high priest, holy, innocent, undefiled, separated from sinners and exalted above the heavens; 27 who does not need daily, like those high priests, to offer up sacrifices, first for His own sins and then for the sins of the people, because this He did once for all when He offered up Himself. Hebrews 7:26–27 (NASB95) —

When I experienced the new birth and the Holy Spirit came to live in me, I began to relate to God in a more Biblical manner. The Bible promises that the Spirit will guide us into God’s truth. (John 16:13) The main way he does this is by giving us understanding of the Bible. Prior to my coming to Christ, a young man shared the gospel with my psychology class. I must have talked to him afterward because later he came by to see me in my dorm room. I cannot remember his name but I do remember what he told me. He took me to the First Letter of John and read to me the following verse.

I have written this to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, so that you may know you have eternal life. 1 John 5:13 (NLT)

He shared with me that God wants us to know that we have eternal life through Christ. This was so different from what I had been taught and experienced in the Catholic Church. How can one know something that is unknowable? The gospel is so marvelous that it seems unbelievable to someone steeped in legalism.

Now I understand there is a fundamental difference between the performance-based religion of Catholicism (and some other denominations) and the faith-based relationship provided through the Gospel.

The Apostle Paul clearly understood this difference and addressed it in his letter to the Galatians.

But suppose we seek to be made right with God through faith in Christ and then we are found guilty because we have abandoned the law. Would that mean Christ has led us into sin? Absolutely not! 18 Rather, I am a sinner if I rebuild the old system of law I already tore down. 19 For when I tried to keep the law, it condemned me. So I died to the law—I stopped trying to meet all its requirements—so that I might live for God. 20 My old self has been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. So I live in this earthly body by trusting in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. 21 I do not treat the grace of God as meaningless. For if keeping the law could make us right with God, then there was no need for Christ to die. Galatians 2:17-21 (NLT)

When Jesus died on the cross, the Bible teaches that those who put their faith in him died, too. (Romans 6) This is a mystery, but nevertheless true. We died to sin’s power in our lives and the power of the Law to condemn us. (Romans 7) The Law is what defines and points out our sins. God gave us the Law to show how hopelessly lost we are. Its purpose was to lead us to Christ so that by faith we might receive his right standing with God. (Galatians 3:21-29) No one can stand in his or her own righteousness. We must have our Lord’s right standing with God. (2 Corinthians 5:21) I hope you will take the time to read and think deeply about these verses of scripture. We can never earn salvation: it is a free gift, one that God never takes back. (Romans 6:23 and 11:29)

If we grow up under legalism, it is difficult to really believe how wonderful the gospel message is! Only the Holy Spirit can deliver us from the enslaving lies of legalism by leading us into all truth which will set us free.

So Jesus was saying to those Jews who had believed Him, “If you continue in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine; 32 and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.” John 8:31–32 (NASB95) —

The precursors to Catholicism were what were called the Judaizers. These supposed followers of Christ, having been heavily steeped in Judaism, could not get their heads and hearts around the radical nature of the gospel. They tried to fit the “new wine” of the Gospel into the “old wine skin” of Judaism.

“And no one puts new wine into old wineskins; otherwise the new wine will burst the skins and it will be spilled out, and the skins will be ruined. 38 “But new wine must be put into fresh wineskins. 39 “And no one, after drinking old wine wishes for new; for he says, ‘The old is good enough.’ ” Luke 5:37–39 (NASB95) —

It could not work then and will not work today to try to fit the unearned grace of the New Covenant into a legalistic container of man-made religion.

The Old Covenant was based on our keeping the Law, something we are unable to do. The New Covenant was something altogether different. It is based on Christ’s keeping the Law on our behalf. He earned for us what was otherwise unobtainable.

For if that first covenant had been faultless, there would have been no occasion sought for a second. 8 For finding fault with them, He says, “BEHOLD, DAYS ARE COMING, SAYS THE LORD, WHEN I WILL EFFECT A NEW COVENANT WITH THE HOUSE OF ISRAEL AND WITH THE HOUSE OF JUDAH; 9 NOT LIKE THE COVENANT WHICH I MADE WITH THEIR FATHERS ON THE DAY WHEN I TOOK THEM BY THE HAND TO LEAD THEM OUT OF THE LAND OF EGYPT; FOR THEY DID NOT CONTINUE IN MY COVENANT, AND I DID NOT CARE FOR THEM, SAYS THE LORD. 10 “FOR THIS IS THE COVENANT THAT I WILL MAKE WITH THE HOUSE OF ISRAEL AFTER THOSE DAYS, SAYS THE LORD: I WILL PUT MY LAWS INTO THEIR MINDS, AND I WILL WRITE THEM ON THEIR HEARTS. AND I WILL BE THEIR GOD, AND THEY SHALL BE MY PEOPLE. 11 “AND THEY SHALL NOT TEACH EVERYONE HIS FELLOW CITIZEN, AND EVERYONE HIS BROTHER, SAYING, ‘KNOW THE LORD,’ FOR ALL WILL KNOW ME, FROM THE LEAST TO THE GREATEST OF THEM. 12 “FOR I WILL BE MERCIFUL TO THEIR INIQUITIES, AND I WILL REMEMBER THEIR SINS NO MORE.” 13 When He said, “A new covenant,” He has made the first obsolete. But whatever is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to disappear. Hebrews 8:7–13 (NASB95) —

The Judaizers could not believe that they had nothing else to earn from God and insisted that it was not enough to simply believe in the Good News and trust in Christ; instead, Gentile believers had to adopt and follow the tenets of Judaism to be truly accepted by God. Circumcision became a rallying point. Uncircumcised believers were required to submit to this Old Covenant rite in order to be part of God’s covenant people. There arose a sharp division among the believers which had to be resolved by a council at Jerusalem. Thankfully those leaders came down on the side of the grace message. Peter spoke convincingly.

So the apostles and elders met together to resolve this issue. 7 At the meeting, after a long discussion, Peter stood and addressed them as follows: “Brothers, you all know that God chose me from among you some time ago to preach to the Gentiles so that they could hear the Good News and believe. 8 God knows people’s hearts, and he confirmed that he accepts Gentiles by giving them the Holy Spirit, just as he did to us. 9 He made no distinction between us and them, for he cleansed their hearts through faith. 10 So why are you now challenging God by burdening the Gentile believers with a yoke that neither we nor our ancestors were able to bear? 11 We believe that we are all saved the same way, by the undeserved grace of the Lord Jesus.” Acts 15:6-11 (NLT)

Paul understood that Christ had come precisely because God’s people had repeatedly failed to keep God’s covenant over the years.

The New Covenant was put into place because man is so hopelessly flawed by sin that he cannot possibly satisfy the demands of God’s righteousness.

Nor are we able to do so now. For that reason, God sent his Son to keep the covenant for us. Jesus actually became the Covenant. (Isaiah 42:6)

Our New Covenant relationship to the Father is based on Christ’s perfect performance rather than our ongoing failure.

Salvation is the product of God’s keeping the demands of his righteousness on our behalf through his Son. Through faith in Christ, a new birth takes place in the human spirit whereby we are radically changed from the inside out. We become God’s children by an incarnation of Christ in each believer. The Holy Spirit takes up residence and joins himself to our spirit so that we are truly “one” with Christ, as our Lord promised would happen.

But the person who is joined to the Lord is one spirit with him. 1 Corinthians 6:17 (NLT)

“I have given them the glory you gave me, so they may be one as we are one. 23 I am in them and you are in me. May they experience such perfect unity that the world will know that you sent me and that you love them as much as you love me. 24 Father, I want these whom you have given me to be with me where I am. Then they can see all the glory you gave me because you loved me even before the world began! John 17:22-24 (NLT)

Paul reasoned that we cannot have it both ways: we must either relate to God on the basis of grace through faith or we must try to relate to him based on our performance of the Law (his righteous requirements).

Paul told the Galatians that if they submitted to the Law in the one point of circumcision, they in effect would be placing themselves back into a performance-based relationship with God, something doomed to failure and antagonistic to the Gospel he preached.

Behold I, Paul, say to you that if you receive circumcision, Christ will be of no benefit to you. 3 And I testify again to every man who receives circumcision, that he is under obligation to keep the whole Law. 4 You have been severed from Christ, you who are seeking to be justified by law; you have fallen from grace. 5 For we through the Spirit, by faith, are waiting for the hope of righteousness. 6 For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision means anything, but faith working through love. Galatians 5:2–6 (NASB95) —

There is something in the heart of man, in our inborn sin nature, that insists to trying to be “good enough” to earn our way into God’s blessing and favor.

It is extremely humbling to admit that we are hopelessly sinful and in desperate need of someone to save us. Those who cannot find it in themselves to admit their desperate need for a Savior will reject the gospel of grace and continue to try to reach God through legalism.

Paul said that such people have “zeal without knowledge.”

I know what enthusiasm they have for God, but it is misdirected zeal. 3 For they don’t understand God’s way of making people right with himself. Refusing to accept God’s way, they cling to their own way of getting right with God by trying to keep the law. 4 For Christ has already accomplished the purpose for which the law was given. As a result, all who believe in him are made right with God. Romans 10:2–4 (NLT) —

Once we are saved or brought into a right relationship with God through grace, we cannot maintain that relationship through our good performance.

Our inherent religious performance orientation is fueled by the pride and independence of the sin nature. God has to show us over and over again that we must solely rely upon what Christ did for us. There is no other way.

Every priest stands daily ministering and offering time after time the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins; 12 but He, having offered one sacrifice for sins for all time, SAT DOWN AT THE RIGHT HAND OF GOD, 13 waiting from that time onward UNTIL HIS ENEMIES BE MADE A FOOTSTOOL FOR HIS FEET. 14 For by one offering He has perfected for all time those who are sanctified. Hebrews 10:11–14 (NASB95) —

Martin Luther came to just such an insight as he pored over Paul’s letter to the Romans. God gave him a flash of revelation, and he saw clearly that “the just shall live by faith.” (Romans 1:17) The gospel offers us the lifeline of relying upon Christ and what he accomplished through his death and resurrection rather than upon our own failed efforts. Religion is man’s attempt to bridge the gap between us and God on our own terms by our own efforts. Organized religion, whatever its persuasion, is a system of trying to accomplish this.

Organized religion asks its adherents to put their faith in the organization and its methods in order to get into and remain in right relationship with God. The gospel asks us to put our trust solely in a Person and what he already accomplished for us.

I found it necessary to leave Catholicism in order to preserve my newly found freedom in grace. Paul likewise walked away from his beloved Judaism, the legalistic performance-based religion he grew up believing. He chose Christ instead, realizing that Christ had fulfilled what Judaism was designed to introduce.

I once thought these things were valuable, but now I consider them worthless because of what Christ has done. 8 Yes, everything else is worthless when compared with the infinite value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have discarded everything else, counting it all as garbage, so that I could gain Christ 9 and become one with him. I no longer count on my own righteousness through obeying the law; rather, I become righteous through faith in Christ. For God’s way of making us right with himself depends on faith. Philippians 3:7–9 (NLT) —

He chose reality over the shadow. He was extremely adamant that there can be absolutely no co-existence between the true gospel of grace and the false gospel of performance. This is what Paul said.

I am shocked that you are turning away so soon from God, who called you to himself through the loving mercy of Christ. You are following a different way that pretends to be the Good News 7 but is not the Good News at all. You are being fooled by those who deliberately twist the truth concerning Christ. 8 Let God’s curse fall on anyone, including us or even an angel from heaven, who preaches a different kind of Good News than the one we preached to you. 9 I say again what we have said before: If anyone preaches any other Good News than the one you welcomed, let that person be cursed. Galatians 1:6-9 (NLT)

Once we understand and experience the true grace of God, it is impossible to remain a part of any group that teaches something contrary.